Accelerated Underwriting (AUW) has the potential to be a game changer for insurers and policyholders alike. Different to simplified issue, which gathers less detail and increases risk at a higher price point, it’s still a faster process, but aims for competitive levels of coverage and premiums with the use of data analytics to assess risk.

Over the past month we have held Shifting Gears breakfast sessions in Sydney, Auckland and Wellington. The sessions were aimed at sparking discussion around what we saw as one of the most important trends in our industry – personalization.

Here’s a look at some of our most popular, thought provoking, and controversial posts from the last year. If you missed any highlights, now is your chance to make sure you’re up to speed before tackling the new year with gusto.

The use of spreadsheets remains highly common among finance and actuarial teams. Traditionally employed for increasingly critical business functions, they allow for quick and flexible analysis of data, but with this flexibility comes complexity. As the reliance, overuse and undue trust of spreadsheets increases so does the danger they bring.

It’s no secret that actuaries do a reasonable amount of coding throughout their working life; most of which is used to setup and maintain actuarial models for a range of tasks eg. valuation, regulation, strategy and pricing. But actuaries aren’t software developers, and so they should take the opportunity to learn a thing or two from one.

We talked to Charles Hett, Head of Actuarial Services at Deloitte NZ, about actuaries in the C-suite. What makes actuaries good executive candidates? And what, in general, do actuaries need to overcome on their way to a top role?